The 10 Covid symptoms to watch out for after spending Christmas with the family
AFTER the hustle and bustle of Christmas, it’s likely you’re feeling a little bit run down.
While it might just be down to the late nights and the extra glasses of bubbly you’ve had – it’s important to know if your symptoms could be something else.
The most recent data from the ZOE Health study states that there are ten symptoms most Brits are experiencing.
They are:
- a sore throat
- a runny nose
- a blocked nose
- sneezing
- a cough without phlegm
- a headache
- a cough with phlegm
- a hoarse voice
- muscle aches and pains
- an altered sense of smell.
These reflect the ailments of those logging their symptoms from the 30 days up to December 5, the experts said.
These signs have been consistent for the last month, with the majority of Brits having symptoms similar to a cold.
Over 1.38million Brits are thought to be infected with the bug at the moment, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) states.
It’s the fourth week in a row that infections have climbed, with over half of the English regions having witnessed an increase.
In England, around one in 45 people have the bug, while in Scotland that’s one in 40.
In Wales, one in 55 people are infected, with one in 50 also having the virus in Northern Ireland.
Due to the fact that one of the main symptoms of Covid is a headache, one expert warned it’s important to not mistake this for other conditions, such as meningitis.
Pharmacist Sultan Dajani said with a hangover you are unlikely to get an temperature – that’s one of the biggest differences between a bug and a heavy night out.
“Flu, Covid and meningitis are all likely to leave you with a temperature above 37 degrees,” he explained.
But hangovers can still and often are mistaken for flu as some of the symptoms are very similar, he said.
“A hangover can leave you feeling tired, achy, and even a bit sick – much like a flu.
“But flu can linger for up to two weeks, whereas a hangover will pass in a day or two,” he said.
Amid the spread of both Covid and the flu, Brits have been urged to give themselves the gift of jabs this festive season.
Chief Executive of the UK Health Security Agency Dr Jenny Harries said getting both the flu vaccine and the Covid booster is the best way to avoid getting seriously ill this winter.
Appointments for the Covid booster can now be booked through the NHS app, or on the NHS Booking System.
People can also just turn up at one of the many walk-in centres around the country.